Ferrari drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc joined four-time world champion Max Verstappen in making their 2026 preseason debuts in a quieter second day of testing.

Team sources described this year as feeling “more uncontrollable than ever” because of the extended pre-season schedule and compressed offseason. Between 2023 and 2025, there was just a single three-day test — held in Bahrain each time.

F1 testing in Barcelona this week is private to allow the teams to focus purely on testing their new cars without concerns about how the performance may be covered by the media or impact public opinion ahead of the new season.

Throughout the first day of action in Barcelona, footage and lap times have been leaked on social media. There were also three reported red flag incidents, with the likes of Colapinto, Gabriel Bortoleto and Liam Lawson stopping on track and putting a halt to the session.

Isack Hadjar crashed his Red Bull in wet conditions on day two; Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen made their first appearances; watch F1 2026: Barcelona Shakedown with Ted Kravitz and guests every evening this week on Sky Sports F1 at 9pm,

Get the full Barcelona shakedown guide: private testing dates, session structure, rules changes, and how fans can catch the action ahead of the 2026 F1 season.

The opening day of Formula 1 testing ahead of the 2026 season has stopped twice in the first two hours after two cars broke down on the circuit.